


The Gathering

by MisSuzyQ



Category: Team Fortress 2
Genre: Anal Sex, Family Drama, Feels, M/M, OC, lovey dovey at the end, more serious than funny
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-09-17
Updated: 2014-09-17
Packaged: 2018-02-17 18:12:27
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,006
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2318669
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MisSuzyQ/pseuds/MisSuzyQ
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After many conversations over the years about Engineer's lover, Engineer's grandmother demands to meet Jane.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Gathering

“And when he walked into his shop in the morning, he darted in and tore down the underwear MeMa spent all night nailing up to the walls!” Slapping the dashboard, Soldier laughed at yet another story shared in the distance between Teufort and Beehive about the infamous wild half of Radigan that was Engineer’s grandmother. “Needless to say,” Engineer continued, “he sure never forgot to pick up her whiskey again!” Betsy, the basset hound, hung her muzzle out the window to absorb the vibrant golden fields that surrounded the gravel driveway through her nose. “Oh, she’s a spit-fire but you ain’t got to worry about her much. She calmed down when she stopped with the Australium that cause her to live so long.”

“Good, because I would have to prank MeMa back,” Soldier said. Tilting up his Hat With No Name, he looked at himself in his black shirt in the side-view mirror. Though he wouldn’t vocalize it, he was excited to finally become a part of someone’s family since his disowned him. He glanced at Engineer in his blue button up shirt and ten-gallon hat. “Are you sure she’ll like me?”

“I tell her all about you and she loves you already! Don’t worry none!”

The truck stopped behind the house. Through the thin wires of the screen door, they could see an old, petit woman sitting at a dining table with a newspaper in her hands. Engineer meant to wait until Soldier left the truck to go into the house; however, seeing his grandmother after years of being apart filled Engineer’s soul with too much nostalgia to wait.

Betsy leaped out the truck and sprinted into the home. Her considerably shorter legs managed to greet the elderly lady first. Stretching as tall as she could, she rested her upper paws against the woman’s thighs and sniffed the right Gunslinger arm.

“Hello there little darling,” MeMa said to the creature. Her attention moved down to the paws when she noticed one of them was blue and mechanical. “Well, you’re a real Conagher!”

“MeMa,” Engineer yelled, rushing to her and kissing her thin lips. “Oh, MeMa, you look as gorgeous as a rose on a bright summer day!” The arms wrapping around him were familiar despite their old strength having withered away.

“I’m awful glad that I spent years training you to flatter old ladies! Now where’d you put your girl? You said you’d bring Jane! Where’s she at?” Behind Engineer she heard the screen door rattle from the force of someone kicking it open. Through bifocals, she examined every spectacular detail of the muscular body until it hit her that what she had convinced herself was a sly running joke was a truth. Her happiness for Engineer was like a concrete block, dropped into a freezing ocean, sinking quickly, landing with a noiseless thud against the floor when he stood beside him. All of Engineer’s dreams of raising a family thrown away so he could be in a relationship that, as she was taught from an early age, could fulfill nothing more than human desire. That man was clearly deceiving her grandson’s kind heart. The Jane she grew to love died in her mind. She exhaled hope and inhaled grief.

“Hello MeMa,” Soldier exclaimed with an outreached hand.

“MeMa, this is Jane Doe,” Engineer said as placed his hand on Soldier’s hip. “Thought you knew Jane was a man since I blatantly told you that.”

Joy quickly evaporated from the couple when MeMa tore Soldier apart with a vicious pair of beady green eyes and dryly said, “I assumed you were joking, not stupid enough to pick up a queer.” Those blunt words slayed them both at once. She picked up her oak cane from the side of the table and pointed it at Soldier. “You sure got balls!”

Soldier glanced down at his crotch. “Well, yes, yes I do.”

“Don’t you sass me, boy! Busting into my house and calling me MeMa and sassing me! I sure as hell ain’t your MeMa! You better watch yourself ‘cuz I won’t hesitate to put lead in you!” Dropping her cane, she pulled out a double-barrel shotgun from under the table. “Got it?” Betsy leapt at Soldier’s feet.

With stoic face, Soldier replied, “Yes, ma’am.”

A thick, suffocating silence filled the dining room. In an effort to fight against it, MeMa put away the firearm with a grin. “Well,” she said in a cheerful voice, “I love you, Dell, and y’all came down all this way just to see little old me so how’s about y’all hang your hats and we’ll talk a while?”

“I reckin’ that’d be fine since I love you too,” Engineer said with a fake smile.

Minutes dragged into each other. At the table they sat with Engineer in the middle of two of his favorite living people but only keeping up a conversation with one of them. The trio had a small amount of time alone before people came. The faces were a mix between old acquaintances, distant neighbors, and relatives that no doubt were informed by MeMa he was there. Each one was the same. They would sweet talk Betsy, tell him how glad they were to see him again, and throw half-assed jokes about him being gay after meeting Soldier while simultaneously ignoring Soldier before sweeping him away in conversation. Only thing that kept everyone safe from Soldier was rendering him immobile by holding his hand. From time to time, he’d try to include Soldier. It rarely resulted in even so much as a nod.

Those simple acts got to him him but not like that look. Occasionally, he’d catch MeMa staring at Soldier with a look that was analytical when all the man was doing was looking at him in the way he always did. It was as if she felt some love towards Soldier but reassembled it into hate and filed it away in her mind. Every time those beady green eyes examined his man, agony crawled painfully up his spine, making him want to scream of acceptance to her; however, he loved her. Besides, he wasn’t stupid enough to yell at her with company around.

Finally, the others were lost in their own chatter. Engineer took Soldier by the hand and led him away. They somehow managed to slip away unnoticed from the dining room into the living room all the way to the bookshelf with a hound at their side. At least Engineer thought so until he glanced behind him and saw MeMa leaning against the dining room entrance with that look. He couldn’t take it anymore. Quickly, he handed a thick binder to Soldier. Leaving Soldier sitting on the floor for Betsy to read along, he calmly approached MeMa. Their green eyes locked onto each other. After a breath, he said, “you’ve been watching him like a hawk.”

“Can’t deny that. I’m keeping an open mind for you, Dell.”

“Your open mind shifted Jane into an evil mother-hubber! You demanded me to bring Jane down because you loved Jane. Guess what?” He stood to the side, pointing at Soldier who laughed at the printed words. “The Jane you love is that Jane sitting all peaceful-like with our little lady!”

“I want to believe he’s good for you but men that sleep with men like him-”

“You mean men like me?” Silence. “Look, MeMa, I love you with all my heart and I don’t ask much of you but I’m begging you: talk to him.”

MeMa gazed at Soldier in thought. “Well, I suppose here after a while I could give him a little heart to heart.”

“Ain’t no time like the here and now. I’m going into the kitchen to help Ellie with supper so that leaves Jane all alone and I’ll be nothing short of broken-hearted if I glance out and he’s got no MeMa.”

A robotic hand lightly touched MeMa’s shoulder as Engineer left her company. “Well, Marie,” she muttered, “you better woman up and waddle on over there.” Brittle legs were aided with each step to the bookcase by a cane. She watched the pair read until Betsy sniffed towards her, causing Soldier to look up. Though his expression was blank, decades of living with a reserved man conditioned her to see through barriers naturally fortified to keep out intruders. On the other side of his barrier lied a sincere hope that she would talk with him. She decided to humor the man. “That there’s every issue of the newsletter I kept up for a time.” Slowly, she lowered herself to sit on the cold floor. “It was a hobby that kept me occupied while Radigan worked. Are you enjoying them?” Betsy walked onto her lap and greeted her with a kiss to the chin.

“Yes, ma’am,” Soldier responded, his cold blue eyes warming up. “I’ve wanted to read these since Dell told me about them.”

“Dell’s told me plenty of things about you as I reckin’ he’s told you plenty about me.” In her hands, she spun the cane around. “As a grandma, I want the best for Dell.”

Slightly beyond MeMa was where Soldier focused most of his attention. “Me too. That’s why I try to give him the best.”

“Good. Now, tell me, what-” A sentence that needed finishing was left incomplete as Soldier rose to his feet and marched to her younger relatives that stood near the dining room entryway. Words and actions that quickly unfolded began thinning a fog in her mind regarding Soldier. With Betsy impatiently waiting on her, she rose from the floor. “Honey, get to my age and come tell me how easy all this is!” A steady low-key growl accompanied her to the scene.

“What did you say about Dell,” Soldier yelled in the face of the cousin with the mustache.

“It’s none of your bushiness, hick,” the cousin shouted but not nearly as loud. Everyone around the room grew silent.

“Dell’s mine so when you say that he’s a disappointment to Radigan it’s my business!”

“It’s sure as hell’s true! Radigan’s turning in his grave because his grandkid decided to be a man no more all for a backwoods-inbred-Redneck-queer like you because you’re the best either you’d get!”

“You’re just ass-hurt because you’ll never be a man like him! And from what I hear, you’d be damn lucky to keep one woman for longer than a year! I, a backwoods-inbred-Redneck-queer, can keep a man but you aren’t even worth one person you insignificant maggot!”

“I was going to be a gentleman and wait until later but what the hell!”

A punch flung towards Soldier face but was redirected for a counter throw. To his right, a neighbor made contact with a boot to his left ribs. His bones loudly cracked under the sole as his back launched into the wall.

Just before another kick, Engineer tackled the neighbor. Between punches to the face, Engineer shouted, “don’t touch my man like that!” His onslaught of punches was suddenly ended with the intense pain of a wooden chair breaking over the small of his back. Instantly, he rolled off in pain, discreetly grabbing a piece of the furniture and smacking it over the head of his attacker.

“Dell, watch out!” Soldier pushed Engineer aside while barely stepping back far enough. A man flipped out a pocket knife, tearing a line up Soldier’s side as he swung it open. The blade dropped as MeMa broke her cane over the man’s head and Betsy ripped him to the ground. After watching her kick the knife, Soldier caught the other half of the weapon tossed to him.

Seeing the grandmother and the dog in the fight alarmed several fighters. Engineer immediately scooped up the dog and pushed it into MeMa’s arms. “You ladies best stay back here alright love y’alls!” Gently he sat MeMa in the living room’s chair and abandoned the two women.

Mouth agape, Betsy blinked a few times and looked up at MeMa. “Did both we just get booted out,” MeMa asked the hound. Betsy’s response came in a howl. “Men!” Both of her legs wobbled as she stood to her feet and shook as she approached the dining room. Punches and pieces of furniture were flying in every direction she looked. “Let’s give them a chance to stop then we’ll show them why that was none too smart.” From her arms came a wolf of agreement.

Another cousin found the knife and held it towards Engineer. Clearing her throat, MeMa shouted as loud as she could, “Y’all best stop wrecking my shit!” Soldier approached the knife with cane in hand. The blade swung frantically at Engineer and again at Soldier. Betsy was dropped. Quicker than the blade could make a third swing, MeMa pulled the revolver and fired a round into the hand. Three more rounds were fired into the ceiling. “I said stop wrecking my shit!”

Gun smoke dissolved in the air, revealing everyone quietly preserved in fear except for the hound tearing away at the ankle. “Betsy, honey, that’s enough.” Staring at the whimpering man, Betsy laid the bleeding ankle on the floor. MeMa didn’t bother looking at the damage. Immediately, her eyes locked on the gay couple. Soldier instinctively pushed himself in front of Engineer at the sound of live fire. The fog in her mind was cleared. At last she saw the Jane she loved. Her left index finger pointed at the shield. “Jane Doe,” her voice echoed in the silence, “I need to have words with you!”

All eyes were on Soldier. Engineer clung to his wrist but with a kiss to the cheek, he released. From Engineer and the recent event, Soldier knew that the woman he approached was not safe to be around in close quarters when angry but he was not afraid. With her pulling him along by his right bicep, he traveled down the dark hallway and into a bedroom.

The door slammed. Soldier eyed the revolver still in MeMa’s Gunslinger hand. “You can save us time and put a bullet in me now because I won’t stop loving Dell!”

MeMa peered at Soldier. “This ain’t for you. It’s for,” looking to the door, MeMa yelled, “the easedropping sons-a-biscuit-eaters at my door!” The old woman raised her gun into the air and fired into the ceiling. “Next round goes into someone’s head so all y’alls better leave us be! That’s including Betsy and her owner!” After the sound of footsteps disappeared, MeMa turned around to face the man she trapped. In front of her make-up table he stood, picking up the golden frame from its sacred place with a smile. It was a photo of baby Engineer cradled in Radigan’s giant arms. Slowly, MeMa walked to the table and holstered the firearm. “What do you like about Dell?”

“Like? I love everything about him.” A wrinkle hand guided his wrist down to lay the golden frame back to its rightful spot. He looked up and met the woman’s gaze.

“Rattle off what you love about him then.” 

“Okay!” Soldier’s face beamed with delight. “There’s his smile that’s more wonderful than anything anyone’s ever known! Oh, and the way you can just look at his beautiful eyes and know that he’s got a brilliant idea and watch as he plays around with it in his mind, that’s one of my favorite things. And of course I love his heart. It’s tough and sturdy yet incredibly soft like his arms. God, every single detail of your grandson is absolutely handsome!”

Words were almost lost upon MeMa in the genuine truth that seeped from him. After a deep breath, MeMa stared into the radiating soul in front of her. “Dell was very special to Radigan and is very special to me. I only want the best for him. I believe a man is only meant to be with a woman.” The bright energy flowing out of Soldier dimmed with a fading smile. “Men only lie with men for lust. I knew Dell was too smart for that so I assumed the Jane he adored was a woman. Then I saw you. I knew you were using him and I despised you.”

She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. “But that couldn’t be farther from the truth, could it? He’s nothing short of your everything.” Her grip lovingly tightened at his wrist as the grin on Soldier’s face slowly returned. “I know by the way you look at him. Every time you’d so much as glance at the boy it’s as if he’s the only person in the whole world.”

“That’s because he is my whole world.”

“It’s not the sort of thing I approve of but there ain’t nothing stopping either of you. Not a knife, not an old hag like me, hell, you’d crawl out of your grave if some living thing was doing him wrong, wouldn’t you?”

“Of course I would! I love Dell more than I could possibly put into words for you.” A few seconds passed as they stared at each other before MeMa reached in front of him, lightly tapping his belt as she opened the drawer. Scooting back, he watched her Gunslinger dig through heirlooms until it caught the object she searched for.

“Let me see your hand there, Jane,” MeMa said, raising a clutched robotic fist from the drawer. On top of her left pale, wrinkled hand, Soldier’s right palm swamped over. Slowly, MeMa slid a ring onto the man’s pinky, her eyebrows narrowing when it wouldn’t budge a little past the first knuckle. Soldier examined the jewelry once she had finally given up. It was a faded silver band with roses engraved onto it. “Radigan gave it to me when we got engaged. I was going to save this for that special woman Dell found to wed. I hoped that would be Jane but you can’t marry him but I want you to have it anyways.”

“No!”

“Boy, I’m going to die someday and I don’t want that being sold at a pawn shop to a slut-bunny! I only want the best for Dell and you’re the best for Dell so you’re going to damn well take it and like it!” With her Gunslinger, she lifted the revolver its home. “And you best know if you hurt Dell before I go, you’re a dead man!”

“If I hurt him in any way, you’ll be first person I find.” The revolver dropped onto the table. Reaching up, MeMa pulled down Soldier’s head for a kiss. Soldier lifted her from the floor with a bear hug though her weight hurt against his injured ribs.

“Dell was sure lucky to find you!” 

“Not as lucky as I was to find him, ma’am!”

“Call me MeMa. You’re my grandson. Now, put this old lady down!” Soon her feet touched the floor. Turning around, she yelled at the door, “Dell, get in here!” The door cautiously opened just enough just for a basset hound and a grandson to step in. Engineer barely closed the door before his legs took to life, sprinting into the room the millisecond his eyes locked onto Soldier.

From the make-up table, MeMa watched her newly adopted grandson run with open arms that soon wrapped around her grandchild. Never before had she felt such joy in her heart at the sight of two men sharing a passionate kiss. Even from the distance, the feeling of love was overwhelmingly sweet as Engineer clung to Soldier with his nose buried into the side of his neck. Nothing in her could bear looking away which made digging through a smaller drawer hard. It was only when Engineer turned his head to look at her that she approach them. Her old hand squeezed between Engineer’s left hand and Soldier back.

Around his thumb, Engineer felt a metal band slide on. Due to his ease dropping, he didn’t have to look away from MeMa to understand he was just given his grandfather’s engagement ring and knew without being told that it could only fit on his thumb since his fingers were smaller than Radigan’s. He grasped his grandmother’s hand. “You don’t know how much this means to me.”

“As long as you’re happy and it’s clear that with this man here you’re drowning in happiness. Still, I’m going to have to kick you out so I don’t wake up to a brawl in the night.” To Engineer’s eye level MeMa raised a key. Engineer’s Gunslinger hand reached up to snatch it away from her.

“That for the little lake house Grandpa built you two hours out?”

“I believe Jane here would enjoy it an awful lot.”

Turning his neck, Soldier commented, “Only if I skinny dip.”

“MeMa says to do whatever your heart desires so long as you don’t give me the nitty-gritty details.” Into Engineer’s ear she whispered, “I’d be awful tempted to let him swim in his birthday suit if I were you.” A wide smile on Engineer’s face told her that Soldier looked magnificent naked. She punched Engineer’s shoulder and winked. “Well, y’alls better head on out.” Against her leg Betsy rested her upper paws, allowing the woman to pet her without bending over. Both grandchildren embraced her, pecked her on the lips and expressed their love for her before exiting her room hand in hand, their shadow’s claws scratching against the hardwood as she followed. 

Two hours of driving and three minutes settling into the house later, Betsy’s exhausted body rested on the foot of the queen sized bed. If Engineer didn’t see the cut on Soldier, they would have ran off to the lake instead of the bathroom. Next to the sink, a topless Soldier was forced to stand. Engineer tapped an alcohol soaked cotton ball against the blood. “Don’t you have a dispenser for this,” Soldier growled, trying not to show any signs of pain on his face.

“Well, Bill was telling me that he took my tools because he figured I wasn’t a man no more,” Engineer said. Placing down the cotton ball, his face winced as he bent slightly to pick up a wad of gauze. “Thought he was teasing. We’ll just take it back tomorrow.” His eyes wandered over to the deep purple spot that blanketed Soldier’s left ribcage. A sharp pain seemed to wreak havoc in Soldier’s body every time his lungs decided to make even the slightest movement.

Each breath Engineer took caused his heart to weight down a little more even as he masked the injuries with gauze. Sure they occasionally were beaten like that in Teufort but they had his dispenser. With his dispenser, the pain could be dealt with quickly to sweep away the attacks from their memory. Without his dispenser, he found himself stuck with a reminder that their love had consequence and that Soldier would take all the punishment.

“It’ll never get easier seeing your handsome body like that,” Engineer whispered. “I die every time. No matter where we go, it’s like they sniff us out and hunt you down and aim to kill just because I’m beside you.” At his stomach he could feel Soldier lifting up the seams of both his shirts. “Jane!” He instantly pulled Soldier’s hands off the material.

“I’m not a victim,” Soldier yelled. There was defensive look in those green eyes that glared at him. “Come on, Dell! I hate when you hide your cuts and bruises from me. Take it off.” Reluctantly, Engineer obeyed to reveal fist-sized spots covering his stomach. “God knows you don’t deserve this just because you’re brave enough to love me back,” he said, his footsteps steadily making his way around. Near the small of Engineer’s back he discovered a sizable purple area with large crimson specs. 

“If a god exists, he should know better than to even think that you deserve any of what you get.”

“Well, what if I do?” Engineer turned around to face him. “All I have to do is pretend I don’t care about you for you to be safe but I’ll always refuse to.” Lightly, Engineer’s hand rested against his jaw. He could feel the metal band rub into his skin as the thumb stroked his cheekbone. Raising his hand, he pressed the palm deeper into his skin. A clashed of rings caused Soldier’s pinky to wrap around the thumb. “No matter who’s fault it is, you’re worth suffering for.”

Soldier gently rested his forehead against Engineer’s mind. A kiss robbed Soldier of three simple words. Releasing Engineer’s hand, his own hands lightly tread down the bare spine, carefully wrapping his arms around as Engineer’s hand pressed between his shoulder blades. Tongues glided against each other as hands strived to take in more of the skin that heated under their touch. He ignored the screaming discomfort in his side as he pressed Engineer into him.

The nonexistent space wasn’t thin enough with the heavy jean material that hid the remaining skin. Soldier desperately wanted all of Engineer. His body would cry and ache but he desperately wanted to be inside the man he loved. Desire caused a hand to drop from Engineer’s back to squeeze in between their stomachs, toying with the belts that kept those increasingly tight pants on. He stopped when he realized what he wanted would probably cause Engineer more pain. He felt Engineer’s finger next to his hand at work, steadily unfastening the belts and pushing down the unnecessary jeans. After sliding off their boots, they were free of clothing’s burden.

It wasn’t until Engineer pulled him into the shower stall and used his body to shove his bruised back firmly into the tile wall did Soldier enjoy feel of Engineer’s bare cock against his thick member. Even then he couldn’t fully enjoy the sensation against his throbbing cock due to the guilt that spread through him as he instinctively grind against the erection, knowing that every blissful movement also surged pain throughout Engineer.

Soldier quickly turned a facet, praying that the water would distract. Instead, it enhanced his need. That need tore at him more that the sharp pain in his ribs that appeared with every thrust. Barely parting his lips, Soldier breathed, “I want to love you but I don’t want to hurt you.”

Running his fingers up and down along Soldier’s back, Engineer looked into Soldier’s blue eyes. “I don’t want you to hurt alone. Besides, your love’s worth any bit of pain I could feel.” Soldier’s lips ran over his as a sturdy forearm lifted his leg and a pair of fingertips against his entrance. At his lips a tongue requested his taste and was easily allowed to sample. Their tongue firmly rubbed against each other as the moment the fingers dug in and out of him over and over again, scissoring as they exited, steadily progressing farther and farther until they at last struck against his sweet spot.

Once both fingers left, their mouths parted again. Engineer reached over for what he thought was soap but turned out to be lube. Squeezing the cold liquid into his hand, he said, “didn’t realize I prepared so well.”

“You’re a smart,” Soldier panted due to the relief of lube and precum being thoroughly rubbed into his aching cock. “You probably thought of it without you realizing it.” Though Engineer’s laugh calmed him a bit, his heart still dreaded the initial pain Engineer would feel. One at a time, his hands were guided beneath Engineer’s thighs. Those loving eyes he gazed into pleaded for him to be brave.

Solder took a deep breath. Hugging the thighs to his hips, he thrust the head of his cock through the entrance and into the bundle of nerves. First his movements were slow but deep but as moans rang into his ears, he moved faster despite the loud protesting at his lung. Engineer clutched his ass around the hard member, rewarding his work with a pleasurable tightness only made better with water assaulting his skin.

“Ah, Jane, you feel so good,” Engineer struggled to yell between the pounding anger in his back and the phenomenal feeling every strike caused. His fingernails dug further into the wet shoulder blade as the cock plunged deeper and deeper into him.

Warm liquid flicked against their abs from Engineer’s ignored cock, aching and begging to be tugged. Intense pleasure and pain swirled together through their systems. Though the shared pain was near unbearable, the pleasure coursing through them was extremely luscious and too satisfying to imagine stopping.

Pressure was building within Soldier, increasing with every thrust and every moan that leaked from Engineer, spiking when he heard Engineer yell, “I want all of you, Jane, I want all of you bad!”

“Not as bad as I want to fill every last inch of you,” Soldier yelled back.

Over the pouring water Soldier heard Engineer chant his name, loud and desperate until he yelled in sweet release. Hot cum coated Soldier’s abs, causing euphoric sensation to erupt in him with his scream adding to the sounds echoing in the bathroom. When he finished, he pulled out of Engineer and slowly released the thighs.

Under the pouring water, the lovers shared a tender kiss. Soldier closed his eyes and rested his lips on Engineer’s bald head. Their injuries throbbed with complaint but there was no regret. Everything from the tile walls around them to the memories of that day faded away. All they knew was the feel of the other as they existed souly as one unit. Soldier wanted to confess his love for Engineer again but held his words. This was one of the beautiful moments that made having Engineer even more of a blessing. Nothing else in that day was more significant to him that day than that moment. So he kissed the bald head, preserving the endless simplicity of being alone and acknowledging the love they were fortunate to share.

**Author's Note:**

> I originally wrote this story a few months ago close to the two year anniversary of my grandmother's death. She was kind but lively, strong and not afraid to speak her mind. God, did she ever say things that scared my family with her fierce bluntness. First thing she said to each of the men that one day became my cousins' husbands was, “She is very special to me, you better not hurt her or I will hurt you.” I remember stories of her pranking while being a leader at Girls’ Camp (like hanging their bras on the flagpole and putting rocks in the bumpers of the bishop’s car) and other small things like her ability to take off her shoe while driving and throwing it at whichever one of my mom’s siblings was causing trouble. One of my own stronger memories is her writing a gossip/info newsletter she circulated in our church that she kept up for a few years. Every Sunday we’d go over to her house through the back door and she’d be there reading the paper. She was everyone’s friend and everyone loved her. No doubt, my whole family still misses her. What a woman she was.
> 
> I guess something in my brain recently figured that Engineer’s grandma was probably something like her. It made sense to me since my grandpa’s a bit like Radigan (he’s reserved, good with computers, and is very intelligent like we took broken things to him and he fixed them without much effort). I’m sure, being as Mormon as she was, if either one of my siblings or I came to her with someone the same gender, she wouldn’t be so thrilled about it so I wondered if Engineer showed Soldier off all proud like to his grandma, what would she do? So incorporated my grandma into his grandma and this is what I came up with and I guess it kept getting longer because I kept wanting to find ways to put my grandma into it or make their grandma more special but I knew I had to stop. Wow, look at me gab there! I got something in my eyes so I need to go smoke. Don’t tell my dead Mormon grandma I smoke or write smut.


End file.
